Culture and Civilization are both colonial and outdated, a fresh look of both is imperative: Devdutt Pattnaik

Best-selling mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik today said that he would recommend future politicians to join drama schools as further opining that “nowadays, natya shastra is more important than dharma shastra.”

“That’s what gets you the votes. You give a great speech, and people will believe you,” Pattanaik said during a session of the India Today Conclave – East.

“Earlier people or kings would fight out to win their kingdom, nowadays people are doing nautanki to win their estate/kingdom. We have brilliant actors. There are actors everywhere. Those who are crying, asking for justice are actors,’’ says Pattnaik. 

“I would recommend our future politicians join nautanki, natyashastras because that’s what gives you the votes,” adds Pattnaik. 

“It generally doesn’t matter what you believe, what you generally follow. So if you get angry you get your votes. If nautanki gives you ‘Sinhasan’ (political throne), then you will do nautanki. Because that is the design of democracy. Democracy says we will vote you if you appeal to our emotion. We don’t care whether you generally perform.”

Reacting to controversies over the “inappropriate’ depiction of Hindu Gods, he said: “Anger is a political dividend. It is currency. If I get angry, I get outraged, I win votes. In the political vocabulary, anger is useful,’ he said
“Mythology needs to be differentiated from other types of stories, legends which are political, fables which have more of an agenda. Mythology establishes a worldview and hegemony, rational secularism is based on myth of justice and equality in Islam and Christianity,” he added further.

Asked which legends or political stories disturb him the most, Pattanaik said: “People use words like culture and civilization which are based on 19th-century ideas, but ideas pertaining to the present, the 21st century needs to be re-read or researched with regrds to present scenario. Civilization, culture are very old, outdated, and colonial ideas. Nation-states are a tough subject that is finding changes with the virtual space coming in, cryptocurrency coming in challenging the nation-state so the new discourse is changing dramatically.”

“Talking about terms like Justice and Equality, Christianity and Islam are based on the ideology that you live only once. And at the end of your life, you will be judged by god for your actions in this one life. God is the judge in Islam, Christianity and Judaism. But one won’t find this ideology in the artwork of Hinduism. God is not a judge but an accountant in Hinduism,” he added further.

 Pattanaik further added that concepts of heaven and hell are all based on accounting principles. The concept of judge not there in Hinduism.

Asked about controversies over “inappropriate” depictions of Hindu Gods, he said: “Anger is a political dividend, its a currency. In political vocabulary, anger is useful. Even gods also do Leela, so this entire game of who is angry is what will make you more powerful. So you see these days Natyashastra is more important than Dharmashastra.

 
“It doesn’t matter whether you give us jobs, whether the economy is doing good, if you play with the right emotion, Democracy will give you power. Thats where nautanki takes place and is regarded as the most important skill to be able to survive in a democracy,” he added.